The present invention relates to a spring operated weighing scale, and more particularly to a spring operated weighing scale having settable indicia for defining a range of weights which is particularly well suited for weighing postal articles.
Conventional forms of spring operated weighing scales, including those used to weigh postal articles, generally display a measured weight by means of a graduated weight scale referenced by a spring carried pointer. Thus, to ascertain the weight of an article, a user is required to view the referenced indicia on the scale and interpolate a reading from between the bracketing graduation marks thereon. He or she may then reference a look-up table and cross reference to a fee or other predetermined value for the weight range in which the reading falls. Though simple in principle, this procedure can easily lead to errors. Especially when a user is fatigued or exposed to the tedium of repetitive weighings, it is all to easy to misreference a weighing, either when done mentally or by looking-up a table. Furthermore, this conventional form of weighing scale generally does not provide a wide angle of view towards the weight scale thereon and as a result only a limited number of user's situated in relative proximity can use the scale concurrently. Another deficiency which is found in all spring operated scales is that the spring constant of the biasing element therein tends to change after a prolonged usage or as a result of changes in climate, leading to weighing inaccuracies with there generally being no simple means of recalibration.
In light of these and other deficiencies in the conventional type weighing scale, the set point weighing scale of the present invention was accomplished in order to provide a user with a scale which facilitates rapid readings of weight ranges with far less frequency of error and which enables panoramic viewing of the weight ranges irrespective of a user's position relative therewith.